Family History News and Views from Lisa Louise Cooke, host of The Genealogy Gems Podcast at www.GenealogyGems.com

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

A Key to Unlocking Genealogy Brick Walls

A few weeks ago my youngest daughter Hannah came home for a
few weeks break when the college term ended.My husband and I, and Lacey and Hannah went out shopping on a Saturday
afternoon, and when we go to the second store Hannah wasn’t feeling very well
so she said she was just going to wait in the car. I handed her the car
keys, and we all went inside to finish our final errand.

The following Monday I needed to run an
errand.I searched and searched for my
car keys and couldn’t find them anywhere. I called Bill, I called Lacey, and I
called Hannah. No one knew where they were. I scoured my car two
separate times, but alas, they were nowhere to be found.

Finally I stopped, sat down, and tried to visualize the last
time I had the keys.

I knew I had them when
we went to the store on Saturday because I locked the front door when we left. Then I remembered
that I had handed them to Hannah who had stayed in the car when we got to the
second store. If she didn’t have them, (and she was adamant that she didn't) then they must be in the car. But of
course I had already combed through the car twice and hadn’t found them so I
wasn’t feeling very optimistic about a third search.

I headed for the garage for one last look anyway.As I opened the front passenger door where I
had been sitting and searched twice before, it dawned on me that I was looking
from MY perspective, when in reality I last remember handing them to
Hannah.What if I looked for the keys
from Hannah’s perspective?

I closed the car door, and opened the back door on the side
where she had been sitting.I climbed
inside, and looked around. Nothing. Then I leaned forward as if I were taking
the keys from the person in the front seat and there they were wedged between
the center console and the back side of seat in front of me! There was no way I
could have seen the keys except from that position.

And like most things do, this got me thinking about genealogy.

If we only approach our
research from our perspective, we miss countless gems along the way.

Have you climbed in the backseat lately?Have you visualized your research questions from your
ancestors perspective? Have you learned more about the places and times in which they lived? How could their
perspective help you see what is wedged between the cracks of your brick walls?

4 comments:

Lisa, YOur a Genealogist after my heart. I have been voicing this for two months down our way. I have also voiced belonging to a society doesn't help you find kin unless your group has a session where you can exchange information and learn who else is searching in areas you are and maybe your replicating research. Thanks for the great topic.

Great analogy. It seems like I'm always trying to see things from one of my daughters perspectives - usually when they've lost something. Just like you did. But I'm not sure I've tried hard to really do that from an ancestors perspective. It's hard to do. But you've given us something to think about in a way we can telate to.

Hi Lisa :) You've been commuting with me, again, as I've been re-listening to the GG podcasts. I completely agree with your post. I tend to me much more interested in what the experience was for those "lives" I search, that with the dates, etc. I try to visualize what it was like for them to go to work, make their home, move their lives and more. When I do that, besides just putting flesh on bone, as I've heard it put, it gives me ideas of other sources of information to pursue.Best wishes!Kim

Hi Lisa :) You've been commuting with me, again, as I've been re-listening to the GG podcasts. I completely agree with your post. I tend to me much more interested in what the experience was for those "lives" I search, that with the dates, etc. I try to visualize what it was like for them to go to work, make their home, move their lives and more. When I do that, besides just putting flesh on bone, as I've heard it put, it gives me ideas of other sources of information to pursue.Best wishes!Kim